UKIP and Respect aren't out for power

Anthony Butcher · 22-09-2004, 01:14 PM

http://www.progressives.org.uk/magaz...&articleid=753

Quote:

UKIP and Respect attracted huge attention at the European and London elections and at the two recent by-elections. They may even have made a material difference to the outcomes. But they are not telling their candidates to prepare for government. Instead, UKIP and Respect remain utterly fixated on the Tory and Labour parties respectively, trying to attract their members or to influence their policies.

This is true only to a certain extent. Of course UKIP isn't preparing for government. It would be insane to actually think that the party will win enough seats in Parliament to take control of the government. We don't have a single MP yet, so thinking beyond the chance of winning a few seats to get us going is ludicrous.

The Lib Dems don't actually believe that they will get INTO phpbb_government either, which is why they can make manifesto pledges that they almost certainly cannot afford to implement, let alone maintain over the long-term.

I think that we have our optimism set at just the right level. We hope to take a few seats in parliament to give us a voice there. The general election is going to be much harder for the party than the European elections because our main trump card, the EU, does not form the entire focus of discussion.

mkpdavies · 02-10-2004, 05:48 PM

My biggest concern is that with the Tories becoming ever more unlikely to get in, we could see a Lib/Lab pact that will steam roller the full integration of Britain INTO phpbb_the united states of Europe. New Labour is a bunch of yes men who will do what Blair tells them too. The Liberals will gleefuly help Blair acheive his aim on this issue too. Our party needs to raise it's game and aim for more than just representation.

02-10-2004, 05:48 PM	#2 (permalink)
mkpdavies Uber Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Woking Posts: 30,615	My biggest concern is that with the Tories becoming ever more unlikely to get in, we could see a Lib/Lab pact that will steam roller the full integration of Britain INTO phpbb_the united states of Europe. New Labour is a bunch of yes men who will do what Blair tells them too. The Liberals will gleefuly help Blair acheive his aim on this issue too. Our party needs to raise it's game and aim for more than just representation. __________________ http://brits4ronpaul.blogspot.com/ http://wokinglibertarians.blogspot.com/ http://lpuk.org My ignore list Labour, Blue Labour, Lib Dems

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